Trip Index
In case you did not set your alarm for the morning excursion, you didn't need to. The ship's four anchors were up to the task. At around 6:30am Monday morning, we woke to a thunder of chains unrolling, making a "thut-thut-thut" sound four times in a row. I recorded this on video (this one was taken on a different day, in case those with eagle eyes notice that we are not docked near Espanola!). It didn't matter which deck you were on (as I asked around); no one was immune from the sound.
I was so tired from not getting enough sleep the night before that we didn't make it to the snorkeling briefing at 8am, even though it was required. As we were experienced and conscientious snorkelers, we figured we didn't miss a whole lot. We scarfed down a quick breakfast in the dining room; I could tell we would be spoiled from stepping outside our cabin and entering the dining room in 30 seconds, compared to a larger cruise ship. We went down to the stern for the 8:45am beach walk excursion at Gardner Bay, wearing our bathing suits under our clothes and lathered up in sunscreen, with snorkeling bag in tow. This was the only time you had the gear in your possession as everything ended up being stored at the stern of the ship for the rest of the cruise. We also brought a backpack with bottles of water from our mini-fridge as well as the Celebrity brown beach towels. Additional bottles were always available at the bar or in a cooler next to the stairs at the stern. Life jackets were distributed to guests waiting in line to get onto the zodiac. The check-in/check-out procedures were very low-tech. (no need to take your headshot or swipe your cabin key like on larger cruise ships) Alexis would ask for your cabin number and place a checkmark next to your name on a list before you were allowed off the ship. This list was used to re-check everyone in when they returned from the excursion. Over the course of the week, he'd know your cabin number already, especially if you did something that made him remember you!
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| tagged snorkel bag |
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| gathering at the stern to board the zodiacs |
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| so happy to start our first excursion! |
Today was a "wet landing", meaning that you would swing yourself off from the side of the zodiac onto the beach in up to half-shin-deep water. Water shoes or flip-flops would be fine for this excursion; our naturalist Soto suggested we remove our shoes and walk on the beach barefoot as it wasn't too hot. Our snorkel bags were left on the beach and we took a walk to the far side, with Soto providing a detailed explanation about the wildlife and habitat. Today's weather was very pleasant as there was cloud cover to block the strong sun.
During last night's briefing, it was said that there would be a ton of sea lions on the beach, but today, there weren't a lot, reason being that yesterday's feeding action was not so good, so the sea lions had to go out again to eat more. I thought there were plenty (though I'm sure seeing a beach full of them would be amazing) and we didn't have to worry about stepping on them. We were not allowed to approach the animals, staying at least 6 feet away, but if the animals decided to come to us, then it would be okay.
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| approaching the exquisite soft white sand beach with sea lions resting |
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| Soto was a very knowledgeable and friendly guide |
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| "baby" seal drinking milk - called "lazy" because he doesn't want to learn to fish but get easy food from mom! |
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| cute baby seal |
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| poor seal got bit by a shark |
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| our first marine iguana sighting |
After we finished our walk, we were left on our own to return to the start, stripped our clothes off to our bathing suits, then donned wetsuits and snorkeling gear to do some exploration. We started from the beach and swam out to some rocks in the distance. I was expecting the water to be freezing cold, but it felt great, not too brisk. Having the wetsuit helped buffer the initial shock of entering the water, plus it gave me buoyancy. People needing extra buoyancy could get a vest to wear. One tip here is that if you have a small bottle of shower gel or shampoo from a hotel, bring that to de-fog your snorkeling mask. The naturalists did provide shower gel at one excursion, but it was not always available. If your own spit doesn't do it for you, then bring something to de-fog your mask.
We saw lots of fish, and even a baby stingray. Having a waterproof digital camera equipped with video was a great investment, to be able to take pictures and video to share with others, and we could immediately see what we took versus having a disposable camera with film. The camera float provided extra security in case it fell out of our grasp, which it never did, but it was nice to slip your arm into the big floating strap while swimming and letting the camera dangle by your elbow until you wanted it in your hand. As suggested in one of the many float reviews I read, I kept the camera's original hand strap installed, but threaded it through a sewn-in fabric loop on the float (like how you would thread two rubber bands together), as there were negative comments reporting that the float's "quick release" strap would pop off accidentally, then your camera would fall down to the depths of the ocean!
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| baby stingray |
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| school of fish |
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| Kaleb diving down for a closer look |
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| more fish |
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After snorkeling was over, we swam back to the beach, kept our wetsuits on and rode the zodiac to the ship. Once aboard, we stripped off the wetsuits, put all the snorkeling gear in the bag, then dunked everything into tubs of soapy water and rinse. Then the snorkeling bags were hooked up by deck number, and the wetsuits hung up on cabin-number-specific hangers, which were left to dry by the side of the ship. This would be the procedure for subsequent snorkeling trips.
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| not today's snorkeling trip, but here are the tubs |
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| snorkeling bags (with equipment inside) and wetsuits hung up to dry |
We then had to check ourselves off of the list. I made a mistake of checking off both me and Kaleb, and Alexis scolded me, saying that he had to see for himself that the person was actually on board. Woops! I pointed to Kaleb once he was done with hanging up the equipment to show he was physically there. It's a good safety measure. After everyone was on board, the ship set sail for Punta Suarez. We took a shower and headed down to the buffet.
Today's buffet was Caribbean-themed. I stopped taking pictures at lunch since it was pretty much the same setup, with the same proteins but cooked in a different sauce. Though there was an added buffet table where a specially themed entree would be presented...today, it was a whole roasted pig, marinated in what seemed to be jerk spices. The chef would be on hand to slice off pieces, including the skin. (though it was not crispy enough for my taste) It was free-for-all open seating every lunch time. We ate with Donna and Tina today. A bar staff member came by asking if we wanted anything to drink, and all of us were sticking with water, which drew a questionable look. The staff were probably used to everyone ordering alcoholic drinks or anything that was not water, since this was after all, an all-inclusive cruise. Why wouldn't you, right? Though after a long swim in the ocean, I would prefer water over anything else. An amusing side note: since the legal drinking age in Ecuador is 18, Celebrity allows those under 21 to drink as long as the parents give permission. Guests aged between 18 (maybe even 17) and 20 took advantage of that, drinking alcohol like it was water! When they tell their friends about the trip, I wonder if they will remark on all the cool stuff they saw, or the fact that they got to drink anything they wanted? :)
After lunch, there was a showing of Part One of the BBC Galapagos documentary in the lounge, but since we had already seen it, we headed to the top deck to relax on lounge chairs and read our Kindles until the ship anchored for the afternoon excursion. We chose to do the long walk, which was purported to be really difficult, with lots of rocks on the path. It wasn't difficult to us as we were seasoned hikers, but I took pictures of the condition of the paths to let you readers decide. Since we always chose the long walk option throughout the cruise, I won't have any examples of the short walks, but it's safe to assume that the short walk would be "easier".
This afternoon's excursion would be a "dry landing", so no wet feet. Since the path was rocky, hiking shoes or tennis shoes with good grip were a good choice.
At the end of the concrete path, we were immediately greeted by a sea lion and a marine iguana that blended into the rock so well, you'd step on it if you weren't paying attention.
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| people almost stepped on the iguana |
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| try to find all the iguanas in this photo |
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| the naturalists wore hats, neutral long sleeve shirts and long pants most of the time |
Our group's naturalist was Jorge, and he was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. He explained about the marine iguanas, sea lions, and the habitat. As we had seen these animals in the morning, I had already learned some facts from Soto, so it was interesting that I could complete some of Jorge's sentences in my head...I was amazed that I could retain information!
The initial portion of the walk was along the ocean, but then it started to get rocky as we headed inland.
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| during sea lion mating time, this beautiful beach would be busy |
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| two sally-lightfoot crabs mating |
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| stepping over rocks |
Then around the corner, we saw our first blue-footed boobie close up!
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| boobie! |
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| more iguanas |
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| loose rocks |
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| still more rocks going inland |
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We were heading into the waved albatross habitat. I couldn't wait to see them. I had watched the BBC
documentary on the Galapagos, and the waved albatross segment was one of my favorites. I loved that they mate for life; even though the birds are separated for six months out at sea, when they come back to Espanola Island, they somehow find each other and do a courtship dance with their beaks, like the birds are so glad to see each other once again. I suppose absence does make the heart grow fonder.
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| a bunch of them laying in the field |
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| up close |
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| incubating an egg |
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We reached the southern cliffs, and it was an awesome sight. Even though it was very windy, it was peaceful; you could sit there for hours and watch the birds fly as the mighty blue ocean pounded against the rocks. We saw Nazca boobies, tropic birds, as well as the Galapagos hawk. Further down the path, there was a blowhole.
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| Nazca boobie |
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| Galapagos hawk hovering |
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| perched |
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On the return portion of the path, we bumped into blue-footed boobies doing a mating dance.
There were so many different birds sighted on this path. Excellent viewing opportunities!
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| boobie with eggs |
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| young boobie |
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| swallow-tail gull |
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| Nazca boobies |
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| baby boobie |
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| more loose rocks, going uphill |
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| very regal |
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| what a ham! |
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| lava lizard |
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It was time to leave Espanola Island and board the zodiacs back to Xpedition. When we got on board, cold towels were distributed...aaaaaahhhhh! There were also refreshments (juice, small bites, beer and wine) set up at a table next to the Beagle Grill, which was very much welcomed after a long excursion.
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| this wasn't taken today, but just to show the towel distribution |
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| refreshments |
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When we returned to our room, we found chilled champagne and a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries on the table, a gift just for being a Captain's Club member. A nice touch, but since the cruise was all-inclusive, I couldn't help but think that I could have ordered this for myself anyway!
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| I feel so special |
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| delicious! |
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It was the same routine again in the evening: cocktails (tonight's special was pina colada, which was meh) along with the next day's excursion briefing, the rush to sign up, followed by dinner. Tonight, we met Malcolm and Helen, and John and Patty.
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| the mushroom was tasty |
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| the beef was a bit chewy |
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| yellow fin tuna was good |
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| this was supposed to be baked pork leg but it looks like a regular tenderloin, a bit dry |
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| pastry cigar was nice |
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| strawberries jubilee was okay |
After dinner, there would be live music in the lounge, but we never participated because we were so tired after the excursions and needed to catch up on sleep for the next morning.
Tomorrow we head to Floreana Island and our first "deep water" snorkeling adventure!
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Enjoying traveling along with you. For some reason, I thought you were on B, but I see that's not the case. Not that it matters -- I'm getting to see some of the things we won't be seeing on B.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that I was able to help out with the pre-cruise items at least! I'll travel along with you on your blog once you update it with "B". I'm intrigued by your Antarctica trip...it's on my bucket list.
ReplyDeleteKat, thank you for your amazing blog. You are so talented, with a keen sense of observation. The pictures are very good and clear, bringing back cherished memories.
ReplyDeleteEagerly awaiting the rest....
Dani Negreanu